In-store theft of value-added products such as personal care products, small electronics and ink cartridges is widespread. A common practice to prevent in-store theft has been to remove the product from the store shelf and place it behind the counter in a secure area. It has been demonstrated that lack of shelf presence can adversely affect product sales.
Another common practice has been to lock the package in a clear plastic container. The consumer needs to take the container to the store clerk, have it unlocked, and then purchase the item. This process is not consumer friendly, is time consuming and adds additional costs associated with each sale.
Another common practice to prevent theft is attaching a tracking device, such as an RFID chip, to the package. If the thief tries leaving the store an alarm is sounded. This preventative measure does not work if the item is removed from the package, the packaging is left on the shelf and the item is concealed in clothing or a handbag.
Another common practice has been to keep value added products on the shelf in packaging which is designed to be easily seen by store clerks and sized to be difficult to conceal in clothing or handbags. However theft can occur by tearing open the packaging, removing the small item, and then concealing the product in clothing or a hand bag.
As a result there is a need to provide a blister package which not only is more easily visible to store clerks but will also have a tear resistance strong enough to alert store clerks and consumers that a thief is removing an item from the carton in order to conceal it in clothing or a handbag. Chances of in-store theft are drastically reduced if it becomes apparent that a thief is noticeably struggling to open the package in order to remove the item.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,051,876 issued to Colbert Packaging discloses clamshell packaging for displaying and housing products. The packaging includes a tear-resistant housing that encloses a display chamber. Tear resistance is achieved by adhering an oriented cross grain laminated film or other substrates with cross-grain properties on a single side of a paperboard substrate to provide cut or tear resistance in multiple directions.